Alex Schwartz - Associate Athletics Director of Strategic Communications - Basketball (M) - Staff Directory

Staff Directory

Alex Schwartz

Title:
Associate Athletics Director of Strategic Communications - Basketball (M)
Email:
Phone:
(865) 974-7501

Updated: May 2025

Alex Schwartz, who served as the primary media contact for the first Elite Eight (2022) and Final Four (2023) appearances in Miami men's basketball history, was named Tennessee's Associate Athletics Director of Strategic Communications on Oct. 3, 2023.

Schwartz came to Rocky Top after spending nine years at Miami, most recently serving as the Hurricanes' director of athletic communications. He was the primary media contact for men's basketball and women's tennis at his alma mater, in addition to serving as the secondary contact for the Miami football program. He previously worked with the Hurricanes' women's soccer program, as well.

At Tennessee, Schwartz serves as the primary media contact for men's basketball and reports directly to executive associate athletics director of brand advancement/chief communications officer Jason Baum. With well over 15 years of experience in sports media, Schwartz has worked in multiple media platforms, including radio, television, online, print and social media.

"Alex is among the rising stars in our industry and we are thrilled to welcome him to Tennessee," Baum said upon announcing the hire. "His colleagues echoed his reputation as a leader in the communications industry he works alongside and the media covering Miami athletics. His expertise and knowledge of the men's basketball landscape will be key to continuing to elevate Tennessee basketball nationally."

The Volunteers reached the Elite Eight in each of Schwartz's first two seasons with the program, 2024 and 2025. Over those two campaigns, Schwartz aided the efforts for three Volunteers to earn All-America status. In 2023-24, Dalton Knecht, the SEC Player of the Year and Julius Erving Award winner, collected consensus first-team plaudits and was a finalist for both the Naismith Trophy and Wooden Award. Zakai Zeigler won SEC Defensive Player of the Year both seasons and joined Jerry West Award winner Chaz Lanier as the lone All-American duo in 2024-25, when he was also a Naismith Defensive Player of the Year finalist alongside Jahmai Mashack.

Schwartz directed all the publicity for two of the best teams in Miami basketball history as the Hurricanes reached the Elite Eight and Final Four, for the first time each, in consecutive seasons. During his nine-year tenure with the Hurricanes, he directed the PR campaign for 33 All-ACC honorees and three ACC Player of the Year recipients in his primary sports. One student-athlete he worked with, Estela Perez-Somarriba, won an NCAA title (2019) and claimed national player of the year recognition (2021).

"I am incredibly excited for this amazing opportunity to join the University of Tennessee," Schwartz said when hired. "I want to thank Jason Baum, Rick Barnes and Danny White for their belief in me. I'd also like to express my gratitude to the many people at the University of Miami who supported me during my nine years there. That said, I cannot wait to get started on Rocky Top and look forward to working with the tremendous student-athletes, coaches and staff members in this elite athletics department."

A 2013 graduate of Miami, where he double-majored in sports journalism and sport administration, Schwartz spent his first nine-plus months after college working as an intern for the Miami Marlins in the broadcasting department, primarily working with the Marlins Radio Network. The West Windsor, N.J., native also possesses extensive experience both covering high school basketball recruiting and broadcasting sporting events for ACC Network Extra.